Conventional toilets typically have a water-flushing system which, when operated, can flush waste down a drainage pipe. However, water flushing systems are not always convenient, for example if water in a particular area is scarce or if it is difficult to connect a toilet to a drainage system. Water-flushing systems are also inappropriate in portable toilet systems.
Various alternatives to water-flushing toilets have been proposed in the prior art. An example of such a toilet is given in US 2009/0255045. This document relates to a portable toilet apparatus having a flexible bag-like container in the form of a tube that can accept waste. The bag is of a continuous sort, such that the open end of the bag is folded and stored in a concertina fashion in an annular shape, the annular shape corresponding to an open aperture in the top of the toilet. The continuous bag can be fed downwards through the toilet housing via feed rolls that pinch the edge of the bag. The toilet in this document hermetically seals the waste in the bag using a heat sealer.
A further example of a toilet is given in US 2009/0165196. The toilet apparatus is similar to that described in US 2009/0255045 in having a continuous bag that can be fed by rollers downwards through a housing and heat-sealed when required. This toilet further includes a processing material that can be added to the waste. The processing material absorbs liquid in order to semi-solidify excrement, such that it can be used, for example, as combustible fuel.
While the above-described toilets of may provide an alternative to water-flushing toilets, they have certain disadvantages. It is an aim of the present invention to provide at least an alternative to, and ideally an improvement on, such toilets.